Home Reading Advice for Parents with Children in Key Stage 2

How can I help my child with Home Reading? Parents, families and caregivers are the first educators of children and they are the key to developing a child’s learning. Home reading is an important part of a child’s learning and setting routines and keeping to them offers your child a sense of security and helps them both at home and in school. Reading is an important part of home routines. We need your help! Please help us develop your child’s reading by reading regularly with your child and supporting their home reading - 20 minutes every school day is ideal. Reading together will help to make your child a great reader and an even better writer! WHEN YOUR CHILD READS AT HOME….. 1. 2. 3. 4.

Set aside regular time slots to read with and to your child. Take it in turns to read to each other. Talking about what is in the book helps them to understand it. Talk about your own experiences…..if it is a book about fishing, talk about an adventure you have had fishing. 5. Make reading FUN! Asking the Right Questions Below are the different reading skills that your child needs to develop. In school your child has become familiar with these different skills – known to them as Assessment Focuses (AFs). With each reading skill there is a Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic prompt as well as the type of questions associated with each different skill. Please use the sample questions when reading with your child at home. AF1: Decoding Strategies Some of the best decoders are those that apply a number of strategies when faced with difficult or unfamiliar words. Children need to have a range of strategies in case a strategy that they are reliant upon doesn’t help them. Here is a range of strategies to teach children to improve their decoding abilities: •

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Vowel search: look for vowels in the word and see if any are placed next to each other to identify long vowel sounds first. Read the rest of the word around these long vowel phonemes. Word beginnings/endings: identify common letter patterns in prefixes and suffixes – learn a range of the most common word beginnings and endings. Words within words: what words that you already know can you find inside the longer word? Build the rest of the word around the known (smaller) word. Tricky word clues: with words that seem to follow their own rules, can you find another way of remembering them? For example, can you say it in a funny way? E.g. “B-E-A”-utiful! Does the shape of the word remind you of something that is linked to the word? E.g. Monkey – the ‘m’ looks like the eyes of the monkey, where the ‘y’ reminds us of his tail. ‘Take a run-up!’: Go back to the start of the sentence, take a ‘run up’ and then either miss out the tricky word or read aloud the first sounds of the word before finishing the rest of the sentence – can you make a sensible guess as to what the word is? Which word best fits (with that starting sound)? Now read the sentence again with your best guess in – does it make sense? Be a detective: Look for all of the clues on the page/book to help you. Are there any pictures/illustrations/titles/subheadings that help? Did something happen previously in what you’ve read to give you a clue?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

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Break it down: which sounds do you know already? Read aloud each of the small sounds individually. Read back quicker and quicker until the word flows into one.

AF2: Understand, describe, select and retrieve information, events or ideas from texts and use quotations and references to the text

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “Woof, Woof! Go FETCH boy!” / Throwing a bone and dipping hands into the text to pick it out] I can finish off a sentence by finding answers in the text

Find and complete this part of the book: … Can you fill in the missing information on…? Which missing word belongs in…?

I can answer simple questions about the text

What happened after...? How many...? Who was it that...? Can you name the...? Describe what happened at...? Who spoke to...? Can you tell why...? Find the meaning of...? What is...? Which is true or false...?

I can describe an event which happens in the book by looking at the text to find the answer

What happened before/during/after/at the same time as...? How many...? Describe what happened on page/paragraph/chapter... Describe how… Can you tell why...?

I can answer questions in a full sentence

As a full sentence answer, can you…?

I can say which part of the text the correct answer is on

On which page/paragraph/section did…? Using the index, how would you find…? Using the table of contents, how long is chapter…? Where would we find…? Which part of the book tells us…? How does the index/contents/glossary etc tell us how to…?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

AF3: To deduce, infer and interpret information about what has been read and justify opinions with examples from what has been read.

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “Hmmmm… most curious!” / Scanning the text with a magnifying glass, looking for clues] I can say why something in the story has happened – even though the answer may not be in the book.

Why did…? Even though the author doesn’t directly tell us, why/how/what…? What is meant by….? Why is… important/significant? What does… think? What can you tell…? How do you think … was feeling? Why do you think the author chose to…?

I can find an example in the book to back up my opinion.

Can you find an example of…? What/why/when/how does… give an example to back up your opinion. What do you think… justify your opinion. Pick a quote from the text to justify why…

I can give more than one reason to back up my opinion.

How many examples of… can you find in the text?

I can explain what the author is describing by talking about the language.

What word(s) tells us…?

What is your impression of… justify your answer with more than one example. Why does the author use the language of…? What does the word… imply about…? Which words suggest that…? How does the author use certain vocabulary to…?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

AF4: To talk about the structure and organisation of the text, including the main features of what has been read.

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “How disorganised! Tidy your room!” /Child dips hands into text and puts pieces neatly into order as if arranging toys.] I can name different features of a text and talk about what they are used for.

Why does the author use paragraphs? Which features of the text help the reader? What is the purpose of the subheadings? What is the purpose of the first/second...last paragraph? Why is a glossary used? Why is a labelled diagram included? What effect does the illustration have on the reader? Why has the author chosen to write on this particular colour of page/background image? Why has information been presented in this way?

I can talk about the appearance of the text and the effects it has upon the reader.

Why is… written in blue/capitals/that particular font? Why are some words written in bold/italic/underline? What effect is the author trying to create by matching the colour of… with the colour of…? Why does the text… appear in boxes?

I know how to use the contents and index of a book to help me find information quickly and effectively.

Which chapter tells us about…? How many chapters are on the subject of…? Using the index, which page(s) feature information on…? Using the table of contents only, which chapters might lead us to information on…? How many pages feature information on…?

I can use words within a text to help answer questions. E.g. Which features of the text indicate that it has only just been written?

Why might a question mark/exclamation mark/ellipsis be used in the title? Why are the sentences at the end of the chapter only one word in length – what effect is trying to be created? Which words suggest that the text has been written by a…? What language has been used to suggest that the text is…?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

I can identify parts of the text which are similar to what I have already read.

What do you notice about the … section of text compared to the … section? How is chapter… linked to chapter…? What pattern/theme can you see in how the author manages to…? How does this text compare to the previous text on…?

AF5: To comment and explain how the writer has used language, including grammatical and presentational features in their work.

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “Extra! Extra! Read all about it!” /Children open text and gossip-whisper frantically to person next to them.] I can describe messages that the author is telling the reader in a piece of writing.

How does this sentence tell you about…? Which words promote… in the text? Why does the author repeat the use of…? How does the word… tell you about how the…?

I can identify meanings in the text by the words the author uses.

Why is the word… effective in describing how…? The author chooses… words carefully. Which ones and why? Why did the author choose the verbs/adjectives/adverbs… and …?

I can talk about how special features used by the author affect the reader.

How does the presence of… tell us about how…? What is the author trying to achieve by writing this sentence in this way: …? What does the author use to make you, as the reader, feel…? Why did the author use… How has the choice of words created a feeling of…?

I can identify repeated themes in the story and explain why the author has used them.

Why has the author chosen to mention… so much?

I can explain specific phrases using the text to help me.

From the sentence… and considering the… , what message do you think the author is trying to get across?

This section of text makes strong reference to… How has this been done and why?

How does the Glossary help you understand… How does… and the title of the book explain…? Why does the writer compare… to…? Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

Explain why… is used. What do phrases such as… tell you? I can use my knowledge of different text genres to work out what kind of text I am reading.

Which features confirm that this text is from the… genre? Explain why this text doesn’t belong in the … genre. Which clues indicate the genre of this text?

AF6: To find and comment upon how the author has used writing for different purposes, including how the author includes their own views in writing and the overall effect the writing has upon the reader.

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “Live or die? Hooray! Booo!” /Children mimic Caesar in the Colosseum with a shaky thumb ready to turn up or down before looking at the text to make their decision.] I can talk about why the author chose to include some details and ignore others to create effects.

Does the author like…? How do you know? By failing to mention… what effect does this have on the reader? Why has the author chosen to mention… but not…? Why has the author included so much/little detail on…?

I can talk about why the author chooses to write in a particular way.

What can you tell about the viewpoint of the author? What happens on page… to suggest that the author is building tension/excitement/anxiety et in the reader? Why has the author used italics for…. on…? Why has the author chosen to use so much…?

I can discuss the meanings of titles and subheadings by linking it to the text I am reading.

What does the subheading mean? How does the text title link to what is written? The title of the text has 2 meanings – explain them. How does the subheading on… relate to the text underneath it? Is the title of… a good choice for this text? Why? Can you suggest, and explain your choice, an alternative title for this text? What subheading would you choose for the section of text on…?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

I know how an author makes information stand out through a variety of methods.

Why were … included? How does the author draw the reader’s attention to…? Was this text trying to…? What has the author done to raise the reader’s awareness of…? What could the author have done to make the issue of… stand out? How does the author try to make sure…?

I can identify parts of a story which make me feel a specific emotion.

Which part of the text made you feel… Why? Identify a quote from the text that reflected a feeling of… Which emotion is the author trying to express on this page? How has he/she achieved it? What was the highest/lowest point of the text – why?

AF7: Relate texts to their social, cultural and historical context and literary traditions.

[V/A/K Hook for children: / “Let’s get out of here! To another TIME…or PLACE!!” /Children shut the Tardis door behind themselves and pull the lever back on their time machine.] I can identify when a story/non-fiction text was written by looking for clues.

What is it about… that tell you…? How did you know…? When was the text written? Explain how you know. Give… pieces of evidence that link this text to the time of…? Was this text written before/after…? How do you know? This text was not written recently. Justify this statement.

I can identify the type of text a book is from my reading.

Which features are common with the… genre? What type of publication would you expect to see this text printed in? Explain. What kind of people might choose to read this text? Why?

Using my knowledge, I can classify stories into different groups.

Which genre of story is this? How can you tell? List the features of the text that link this text

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011

to the …genre. Who is most likely to buy this book? Why? Which of the following best describes the story? Explain your choice. I can identify messages about: -historical events -cultural views from the books I am reading.

What does… tell us about how… lived? Compare how we live to … What are the similarities? Contrast how we live to … What are the differences? Which country/time do you think the text/author/main character is from… Explain your reasoning. How is the life of… similar/different to life in…? How were things different for… in…?

Authored: M. Ryan (Literacy Leader) and M. Bailey (Key Stage 2 Leader), Blue Coat CE VA Primary School

Last updated Oct. 2011